


A Very Whitly Sleepover

by KillerQueeenBee



Category: Prodigal Son (TV 2019)
Genre: Gen, Malcolm Bright Gets a Hug, Movie Night, Muffins, Sibling Bonding, Siblings, Sleepovers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-12
Updated: 2020-04-12
Packaged: 2021-03-02 05:27:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,283
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23609878
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KillerQueeenBee/pseuds/KillerQueeenBee
Summary: Ainsley uses national siblings day as an excuse to hang out with Malcolm and make sure he's okay.
Relationships: Malcolm Bright & Ainsley Whitly
Comments: 14
Kudos: 62





	A Very Whitly Sleepover

It wasn't unusual for Ainsley to text him asking if he was doing something that night or working on a case, though it was unusual for her to immediately text Malcolm back asking if he was home. He didn't have a case and their mother was currently preoccupied with other things, where else would he be? When he received a simple "Omw" in response to his confirmation, he was more than a little apprehensive. Ainsley loved to bury the lead sometimes and freak him out for no reason, and other times she treated lightly things that truly concerned him. He didn't know what kind of visit this was going to be, but he didn't hold out hope that it was something good.

When Ainsley let herself in twenty minutes later, rolling a suitcase behind her, Malcolm had no choice but to assume she was here to tell him goodbye and rush off somewhere, possibly for a long period of time. "Hey, bro. Do you know what today is?" She asked cheerfully.

Malcolm shook his head. "Is it the day you finally get away from this mess of a family?" He asked, only half joking. He was actually kind of worried that she might have come to her senses and decided to run away. 

"No, silly." She huffed as she laid her suitcase down and unzipped it. "It's National Siblings Day!" Ainsley declared, tossing a pack of licorice toward Malcolm. "We're having a sleepover." She held up some movies and popcorn boxes. One box was movie theatre butter (for her), and the other was the pitiful, disgusting unsalted and unbuttered nonsense that Malcolm liked. "You're stuck with me allllllll day. And you're gonna have fun whether you like it or not." She stood up and went to the kitchen where she found two big bowls and she began popping a few bags.

Malcolm caught the licorice and looked at it for a long moment. "National Siblings Day." He echoed with a small smile. It was sweet that she thought to do this, that she cared enough to come here and to buy popcorn for him that she hated. Maybe he'd become jaded since Eve had left him without a second thought, but this was just so unexpected and kind that it overwhelmed him a little. He absently hugged the licorice to his chest as he watched Ainsley make popcorn.

"I didn't know there was a siblings day or I would have gotten you something or... Something." Malcolm walked over to the kitchen and set the licorice down on the counter before he hugged Ainsley tightly. "Thank you, Ains. It means a lot to me." He kissed her on the top of the head before pulling away. 

Ainsley hugged Malcolm back tight and then lightly pushed him away as he pulled back. "Yeah, shut up." She teased, smiling. She poured the few bags of popcorn into one bowl and then handed it to Malcolm. "Here, go pick out one of those movies, get it ready, and sit your ass down on the couch."

Malcolm took the bowl and grabbed a movie from her suitcase. He went and put it in and sat down on the couch. "Did you really only bring ridiculous movies? Is this some kind of intervention?" He joked as he ate a handful of popcorn.

Ainsley soon joined Malcolm with her bowl of real popcorn and sat by Malcolm. "Yeah, it is. And come on! You know Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure is exactly the kind of ridiculous that you need in your life right now." She said, nudging him with her shoulder. "You know your TV is way too big for you to only watch boring documentaries and my reports on it." 

Malcolm rolled his eyes, but she was kinda right. He liked watching other things, especially happy, ridiculous movies like this, but he didn't like watching them alone. "It's a good thing I have you then, isn't it?" He said with a smile.

Ainsley threw a few pieces of her popcorn at Malcolm. "I am truly a joy to be around." She laughed. "Now shut up, watch the movie, and relax for once. Okay?"

Malcolm chuckled and threw popcorn back at her. "Okay, okay. I am ready to watch a movie and I'm going to relax." He assured, and he actually found it pretty easy to relax with Ainsley. He was reminded suddenly of a time when he wouldn't talk to anyone, not even his family, and Ainsley had built an absolutely terrible blanket fort and snuck some snacks into it before dragging him by the hand out of his bedroom and into the fort. It had made him happy, and it had healed a little bit of his tiny heart. He wondered if she even remembered that.

It turned out that she did remember, and she had more plans for tonight than Malcolm had really thought she would. When the movie was over, Ainsley practically poured out her suitcase which was full of blankets along with twine, a tripod, hair ties, and some lights to top it all off. "We're going to watch another movie in a minute, but right now we are going to build a fort."

Malcolm felt a wave of childish joy at the fact that he was able to do this with Ainsley this time. He started pulling furniture into fort position and Ainsley began putting up blankets. They made quite the team together, and the fort was magnificent, if a tiny bit haphazard. But there were lights strung up, with pillows lining the interior of the fort, and enough room for the two of them to fit comfortably and it was perfect.

They watched Venom next and after that Ainsley suggested they watch BuzzFeed Unsolved. "But not True Crime, though. Only Supernatural. Watching True Crime is no fun with you." She poked him in the side.

Malcolm laughed and pushed Ainsley away from him. "True Crime is definitely more educational with me." He pointed out. It was entirely possible that he knew too much about murder, but that wasn't important. He grabbed the remote and started pulling up BuzzFeed while Ainsley ventured out of the fort to make some tea.

When she returned, she set down the two mugs and then pulled two bottles of nail polish out of her pocket. "I'm going to paint your toe nails and then you're going to paint my finger nails. Deal? Great." She sat cross-legged by Malcolm's feet and she held up the two bottles. One was a lovely shade of deep blue, and the other was a bold pink. "Pick one. Or both, I guess, if you want. Since no one but you will really see them it doesn't actually matter, so we can do whatever you want."

Malcolm shook his head with a chuckle. "Blue, I guess, if it's non-optional." He said, but actually he didn't have any qualms about her painting his toenails. She was right about no one seeing them, he didn't have a girlfriend anymore, he always wore closed-toed shoes, and no one else really came into his home. Except maybe Gil or their mother, but he wasn't afraid of what they might say. Gil might tease him a little, but he could handle that.

Ainsley smiled and pulled Malcolm's foot into her lap where she then proceeded to paint his nails carefully and precisely. She looked up when Malcolm started an episode, and was pleased to see that it was one of their favourites. "Good choice." She hummed as she went back to work. Soon, Malcolm's toes were all painted and he got strict instructions not to move.

Malcolm took the pink nail polish when it was handed to him and then he took Ainsley's hand when she moved closer to him and offered it out. He then began to paint her nails one by one, very, very carefully. She looked at her nails when he finished with the left hand and moved on to the right.

"You're actually really good at this." Ainsley said, surprised. Malcolm laughed and glanced up from her fingers. He looked surprised and pleased, and that made her smile.

"I'm good at delicate tasks, when my hand isn't shaking." He said with a little smile. He finished the other hand and looked over his work. "They actually do look pretty good." He said proudly.

Ainsley bumped her shoulder against Malcolm's. "We should do this more often, huh?" She suggested gently. She knew Malcolm probably needed some company these days and he never reached out to her for it. But that was okay. She could handle being the one who had to initiate hang outs like this.

"Yeah, we should." Malcolm said with a little nod. "It is really nice." He said, and he took a long sip of his tea. He wiggled his toes a little. "How long until they're dry?" He asked, rather tempted to touch the polish to see if it was dry. 

Ainsley elbowed Malcolm lightly in the shoulder. "Just be patient, Malcolm." She said with a smile. She then rested her head against his shoulder and watched the show happily.

Malcolm relaxed when Ainsley put her head on his shoulder. He rubbed her shoulder and realized he was actually very happy. It was so nice of Ainsley to do this for him. He had gotten used to a certain degree of disappointment and loneliness, but Ainsley had worked her way firmly into his life right then, and he was incredibly thankful for it. 

After they'd lost track of how many episodes they'd watched, Ainsley took their empty mugs to the sink and turned off the lights. Malcolm yawned softly and was about to get up when Ainsley came back and settled in for more episodes. "Don't tell me you're tapping out already? Weak, bro." She teased, getting comfortable among the sea of pillows and extra blankets. 

And how could Malcolm not stay awake for a few more after that? But as they went on he got more and more tired and before he knew it he was asleep. Ainsley carefully pulled a few blankets onto Malcolm and turned off the TV. She then settled back down in the fort to sleep. 

When Malcolm woke up, he was a little disoriented at first. He wasn't in bed, and he was always in his own bed. Except the one time he'd nearly accidentally killed Eve. He crawled out of the fort and stretched luxuriously. He paused though when he caught scent of a very distinctive smell. He walked cautiously toward the kitchen where he found Ainsley. "Is this a dream?" He asked hesitantly.

Ainsley chuckled as she began to press some coffee. "No, sleepyhead. If it were a dream, I wouldn't have had to do any work. And trust me, that is not the case here." She poured Malcolm a cup of coffee and pushed it toward him. "You slept for quite a long time, how are you feeling?" She asked with a smile. Ainsley Whitly was a morning person.

Malcolm sipped the coffee carefully and it felt too real to be a dream. How long had he slept? It must have been at least seven hours. That was a lot for him. "I feel good, I guess? A little paranoid right now, maybe." He answered honestly. He ran a hand through his hair and tried to figure out what was going on here. 

"Paranoia is a big part of your personality, Malcolm. But, I have good news for you." Ainsley pulled a muffin pan from the oven and placed it on the counter. She got a plate out of the cupboard and a knife from the drawer before giving Malcolm a meaningful look. "You're not going crazy, and this isn't a dream." She lifted a muffin out of the pan and put it on the plate. "I made blueberry muffins because I know that dream you had really freaked out and you must have been craving muffins ever since. So, I'm telling you these are blueberry," she cut the muffin open and handed Malcolm half while taking up the other half herself, "and they really are. I promise." He raised her half in a sort of toast before she took a bite out of it.

Malcolm watched Ainsley pull out the muffins and he really was starting to wonder if he was really here at all. He glanced at Sunshine who seemed content as ever. That was a good sign. And Ainsley made a point to cut the muffin and prove to him they really were blueberry and when he took a small bite of his half, it really truly was. He knew it was silly to feel so much about muffins, of all things, but it was just... It was what he'd needed. He was going to hug Ainsley, but she hugged him first and that was just beyond perfect. He hugged her back tightly. "Thank you." He whispered.

Ainsley rubbed Malcolm's back and hugged him tight. "I've got your back, Malcolm. Always. I'm your sister, I'm here for you. No matter what you need." She promised him, and he knew she was telling the truth. Malcolm felt so very safe in that moment. 

"I love you, Ains. Thank you so much for everything." Malcolm said gently before he finally relinquished his hold on Ainsley and pulled away from the hug. 

"I love you too, Malcolm. Now stop it with all this sappy stuff and eat some of these muffins." Ainsley said with a grin and she soon joined him on the barstools for the nicest family breakfast they'd had in years.


End file.
